Keith's note: The Facebook Group Huntsville Space Professionals is tracking workforce issues, layoffs, etc. in the Huntsville area.
Facebook Resource for Huntsville Folks
I think giskard03 is premature in his layoff estimates and ~100 is extremely optimistic. I know of several hundred although PA is being very quite about actual numbers and the local media, as usual, is failing to report the actual impact of these layoffs. Let's wait for the outprocessing numbers tomorrow, if they are ever released. Some are already long gone and the Jacobs groups are being hammered with layoffs.
Drive by the Wellness Center and the Activities building and check out the parking lot, not to mention all of the security people around. That should give you some idea of just how significant this impact will be. These buildings are where the outprocessing will occur!
It's true that the final number of Jacobs directs was less than expected, but add to that (your mileage may vary) 34 voluntary RIFs, 57 reduced hours, and 185 subcontractors-and that is just Jacobs.
Jacobs is the largest contractor, but 21 got re-scoped tasks and had to lay people off. We don't know the final total yet.
On the surface the RIF looks quite benign, however - we have been told that another RIF at the end of this fiscal year is almost certain. So in a sense, the people who are left basically have a few months to get their job search finished.
I know of a few folks who are fed up with the whole thing and despite surviving the RIF have committed themselves to leaving as soon as they have the opportunity.
NASA really has been gutted of some excellent people and guess what - they ain't comin' back.
Leave a comment

- 3 Feb: NASA Administrator Leads Action Session of President's Council on Jobs and Competitiveness [New]
- 3 Feb: Software Process Improvement Industry Day Discussion
- 9 Feb: NASA International Space Station Advisory Committee Meeting
- 10-11 Feb: Astronomy and Astrophysics Advisory Committee Meeting
- 11 Feb: NASA Astronaut to Honor Black History at Virginia Air and Space Center [New]
- 13 Feb: ESA Briefing on New Results from Planck Mission [New]
- 14 Feb: Astronauts' Discussion Of Recent International Space Station Mission [New]
- 14 Feb: NASA Tweetup With Space Station Astronaut Ron Garan
- 15 Feb: STA reception with Mike Coats [New]
- 15-16 Feb: 15th Annual FAA Commercial Space Transportation Conference
- 21 Feb: ISU 16th Annual Symposium: Sustainability of Space Activities: International Issues and Potential Solutions
- 22 Feb: 2012 International Geoscience and Remote Sensing Symposium
- 22-23 Feb: 2012 NASA PM Challenge
- 23 Feb: NASA Advisory Council Science Committee Planetary Science Subcommittee Meeting [New]
- 26-28 Feb: Space Exploration Alliance 2012 Blitz
- 27-28 Feb: Second International MEPAG Meeting
- 28 Feb - 1 Mar: 4th Annual NASA STEM Educators Workshop Series
- 2 Mar: NASA Glenn Tweetup Celebrating 50th Anniversary Of First American To Orbit Earth [New]
- 6-7 Mar: JPL Hosts High-Tech Small Business Conference [New]
- 22 March: Symposium on Suborbital and Small Satellite Missions
- 27-29 Mar: 50th Robert H. Goddard Memorial Symposium [New]
- * Submit Your Event | More Events *

Initial estimates of the layoffs were on the order of 500 to 700 Jacobs ESTS employees. Fortunately, ESTS management and NASA did a great job working together to minimize job losses and retain expertise. The actual number of people that lost their jobs was only ~100. Our thoughts and prayers go out to those people and their families. Hopefully they'll be back soon.